Transcript “It Was a Dark and Stormy Night.”
“
“It Was a Dark and Stormy Night.” Coordinate Adjectives
CCGPS Standard
O ELACC7L2: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
O a. Use a comma to separate coordinate adjectives (e.g., It was a fascinating, enjoyable movie but not He wore an old[,] green shirt).
Let’s start with a look at vocabulary.
Where have you seen the word coordinate used? How have you used it?
Have you used it in another content class in school?
“It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger.”
O
A Wrinkle in Time
by Madeleine L’Engle
Look at the first part of the sentence, “It was a dark and stormy night…”
O Take out the word
and
.
O Now, write the sentence.
O Exchange sentences with the person next to you.
O What does the sentence look like now?
Now try reversing the adjectives.
O
It was a stormy, dark night.
O
Does the sentence still make sense?
Here is what our new sentences
should look like: O
It was a dark, stormy night.
O
It was a stormy, dark night.
We revised the sentence two ways. It made sense both times.
O We call the adjectives
dark
coordinate adjectives.
and
stormy
O O Coordinate adjectives can have the word
and
between them and still make sense.
Also, coordinate adjectives work if their order in the sentence is reversed.
Why did the new sentence need a comma?
O The adjectives preceding adjectives. Commas are placed between coordinate adjectives.
night
are called coordinate
So, what are coordinate adjectives?
O Coordinate adjectives are two or more adjectives preceding a noun that modify the noun in the same way. They need a comma placed between them.
We can test for coordinate adjectives in two ways.
O O If I use
and
between the adjectives does it sound correct? Answer yes? Coordinate adjectives.
O I ran across the bumpy, winding path.
O I ran across the bumpy and winding path.
If I reverse the order of the adjectives, does it make sense? Answer yes? Coordinate adjectives.
O O The confident, poised speaker enthralled the crowd.
The poised, confident speaker enthralled the crowd.
Try these sentences. Do they include coordinate adjectives or not? Write yes or no in your notes.
1.
2.
3.
4.
It was a cold September night.
I ate a beautiful delicious apple.
I read an exciting descriptive novel last week.
The witch brewed a deadly poisonous concoction.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Did you get these answers?
No Yes Yes Yes
1.
2.
3.
4.
Great! Now explain each one in your notes.
It sounds weird to put September
and and
between cold and September. Actually, cold modifies night! Go figure.
The word beautiful and delicious. Both modify apple.
and
needs to be between The word exciting and descriptive. Both modify novel.
and
needs to be between DITTO!!
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Here’s your practice. Copy each sentence and insert commas where they are needed.
The book I just started includes vicious horrible zombies.
The football game is going to be played on a cold September night.
Please help me dye the red Easter eggs.
I love to plant beautiful luscious red flowers in my garden.
This great informative sentence may not need a comma but you can’t be sure!
Answer Slide
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The book I just started includes vicious , horrible zombies.
The football game is going to be played on a cold September night.
Please help me dye the red Easter eggs.
I love to plant beautiful , flowers in my garden.
luscious red This great informative sentence may not need a comma , but you can’t be sure!
The End
Help think of a more creative way to end this presentation. “The End” is number one on the list of “Top Ten HORRIBLE Conclusions!”